Under Prepared
by Bow Ties And Hair Gel
Summary: It was so sudden, so quick. How one little turn of events could come to an outcome like this, Cass would never understand. She had calculated so many things that could go wrong, and had planned and prepared accordingly, but never in a million years did she think she would be kneeling on the ground with Eugene bleeding out in her lap. (More chapters to come)
1. Chapter 1

Cass was usually a level headed person. She took after her father in that aspect. Always prepared for everything; always calm and collected, only becoming hot headed when Rapunzel's naivety or Eugene's antics clouded her judgment. She'd rather be over prepared that under prepared, but nothing could prepare her for the day that lied ahead of her.

It was so sudden, so quick. How one little turn of events could come to an outcome like this, Cass would never understand. She had calculated so many things that could go wrong, and had planned and prepared accordingly, but never in a million years did she think she would be kneeling on the ground with Eugene bleeding out in her lap.

...

News of the Stabbington Brothers' escape spread across Carona like wildfire, and when word traveled to Eugene's ears, the news hit him like a load of bricks to the chest.

"Rapunzel I have to go." Eugene had made up his mind in the matter of seconds. He new they would be looking for him. He couldn't sit and wait for them to pillage through the whole kingdom to get to him, or even worse, try to get to Rapunzel. The weight of that thought alone beared heavy on his mind.

"Eugene please just wai-" Rapunzel started, but she was cut off by Eugene's worried, pleading tone.

"Rapunzel I have to help find them. I know how they think. I've worked with them for years and I know their ins and outs. I'm the guard's best bet to finding them. Please, _please_ you have to understand."

"You know Raps, as much as I hate to admit it, Eugene is right on this one." Cass had been waiting impatiently by the door, drumming her fingers on the butt of her blade that hung from her belt. She was geared up in a royal guard uniform, and had another in hand for Eugene. The we're running out of time; any longer and the brothers would get away. This endless waiting for Rapunzel to give Eugene the okay to leave was becoming irritating, but Cass contained it well. "He's worked with them before, and any info and help we can get from him would benefit us immensely."

"Please Blondie." Eugene brought his hand up to Rapunzel's cheek, brushing his thumb softly back and forth across her freckled skin. "God forbid they come after you. I couldn't live with myself if they did."

Rapunzel sighed. She knew they were right. She reached up and grabbed Eugene's hand in her own and gave a gentle squeeze.

"I'm just worried... After what happened with the dungeon incident... I just don't want you to get hurt."

"I know I know. But I can take care of myself. And if I can't, Cass'll be there to save my ass." Eugene looked back at Cass with a smug look as she rolled her eyes.

"In your dreams Fitzherbert."

Rapunzel chuckled slightly, knowing her friends would be alright. Eugene gave her a quick peck on the cheek before running out the door with Cassandra. They swiftly made their was down to the guard training center where everyone was waiting, Eugene changing into his uniform as they ran.


	2. Chapter 2

Eugene wheezed in Cassandra's lap, his face scrunched up in a agony as waves of pain hit him hard. Being daughter of the captain of the guard meant Cass had seen many of her father's men injured before, but never had Cass encountered such an injury as severe as this. She had never smelled the heavy copper sent that came with large amounts of blood, nor had she seen this much blood up close before. It's nauseated her.

Cass pressed her hands tightly to Eugene's wounded abdomen, trying to apply as much pressure as she could. Her hands were beginning to stain a dark red. She couldn't believe the blood coming out of Eugene's thin waist; dark and cloying and so much. Eugene gasped as Cass pressed harder.

"Shhh shh shh. Relax Eugene, I've got you." Cass looked down worriedly and big eyed at Eugene. Blood trickled down the side of his mouth and nose. His breathing sounded garbled and labored. He was pale; white like a sheet and absolutely drenched with sweat.

For the first time in her life, Cass had no idea what to do.

...

The Brothers had taken down the three men guarding their cell in a matter of minutes, waiting for one to walk close enough to the bars for them to reach through and knock him unconscious against the metal poles holding the brothers in their cage. They grabbed his sword and the cell keys, and when the other two guards came running, they took them out... quickly and messily. They ran off quickly, climbing out the nearest window and leaving the two guards slaughtered and one unconscious.

These words left the captain's mouth and sent shivers down Eugene's spine. Eugene wasn't scared of much. Just the usual: bad hair days, wrinkled shirts and whatnot, but the Stabbingtons were up high on that small list. The thought of losing Rapunzel because of his bad relationship with the brothers is what really fueled his fear of them. The only thing that scared him more than that was the occasional thoughts he would get about the incident at the tower, late late at night. But they were becoming fewer and far apart.

Cass on the other hand was not phased by her father's explanation on the escape, at least not in the same way Eugene was. She wasn't scared, but angry. How could her father not better prepare his guards for something like this? How could his men be so naive to think the brothers wouldn't try to escape? A guard should be prepared for anything, and should not think lightly of anyone locked up in that dungeon. These thought bounced around in her mind, only making her more frustrated. If it were up to her, those brothers would not have escaped.

"Now men, these brothers are armed and dangerous." The captain continued, "and the last thing I need is more men lost because of them. Tread lightly and be prepared for anything. Im handing things over to my daughter. She and Eugene will be in charge of this hunt. Listen carefully men."

The captain walked down from where he was standing on a circular pedestal in the center of the yard. Cass and Eugene began to walk up, but the Captain grabbed Eugene by the arm and pulled him aside.

"Look at me, Rider." He growled, Eugene's arm still in his grasp. Eugene obeyed, giving the captain a stern look. "Don't screw this up. Do you understand me?"

Eugene looked dead into the captain's eyes, determination written all over his face.

"I've got this. I promise."


	3. Chapter 3

Cass had carefully taken Eugene's armor off so she could apply pressure, but even as the minutes painstakingly passed by, she still couldn't bring herself to inspect the wound. She took shifts from gazing down worriedly at Eugene and staring off into the distance, trying to make out anyone who could possibly help. But they were completely alone. She didn't understand how she and Eugene became so separated from the rest of the guard, stranded in the middle of the woods. She looked down at Eugene and noticed his eyes starting to droop.

"Hey!" She took one hand and gave him a few gentle pats on the cheek. Eugene stirred and blinked lazily, gazing up at Cass with a pained expression, "Talk to me. You need to stay awake. So talk to me, alright?"

"Y-you know... I've been here b-before." Eugene gasped out after taking a few short breaths, looking hazily into Cassandra's eyes. The pain was like fire, engulfing his whole being, but his appendages were starting to go numb. It terrified him. He knew the feeling all to well, but the last thing he wanted to do was freak Cass out more. So he kept that detail to himself. He'd never seen her so deeply _afraid_ before.

"What do you mean?" Cass didn't quite follow. Was he becoming delirious?

"In th-this situation." Eugene sluggishly gestured to his bleeding chest with a nod of his head. Cass looked down at where her hands covered his wound and then back to Eugene, her eyes widening a little, "And Rapunzel... she was there."

Cass certainly wasn't prepared to hear the words that Eugene mumbled out between gasps and winces. No one had ever told her the real story of how he rescued Rapunzel from that tower; neither Eugene or Rapunzel ever really felt comfortable sharing with anyone. The only people who knew were the king and queen. Cass had her ideas of how it went down, but the story Eugene told was definitely not how she had imagined it.

...

"You sure you're up for this?" Eugene asked Cass smugly. Cass gave him a dirty look before mounting her horse.

"Oh gosh. Oh no. I'm _so_ scared." She retorted monotonously, her deadpan sarcasm hitting Eugene like a frying pan to the head. "I've been around the block a few times before. I can handle a couple of brutes."

Eugene mounted Max and gave the horse a friendly pat. The captain was not at all happy about Eugene pretty much taking Max for his own, but the two had such a unique bond that the captain didn't really have a choice. Watching from a short distance, the captain scowled with a twinge of jealously.

"Rider!" The captain rode up to Cass and Eugene on his own horse, handing Eugene a garment of sorts, "Give this to Max. It's a shirt we confiscated from one of the brothers when they were arrested. Max'll sniff em' out." As Eugene had Max sniff out the shirt, the Captain turned to Cass. "You ready?"

"I'm always ready." Cass gave her dad a confident smirk.

"I know I know. Be careful out there, okay?"

"Yes sir." Cass watched as her father began to leave and called out to him quickly, "hey dad?!" The captain turned around quickly, "you too, okay?"

The captain smiled briefly and nodded before riding off into the woods, a small squad of guards trailing behind him to run a perimeter check around the kingdom wall. Cass watched as her father disappeared as he crossed the bridge leading to the woods and vanish into the trees.

"Max has their sent." Eugene said, breaking Cass from her daze. Cass nodded and flicked the reins on her horse.

"Common men lets move!" Cass called out as her horse began to run. Eugene and Max galloped passed her, leading the way with the scent of the two brothers locked into Max's nose. A group of guards followed swiftly behind them, crossbows at the ready and their eyes sharp and on the lookout for the two red headed criminals.


	4. Chapter 4

**After a long and very shity 2018 , I am back! I've been wanting to update this fic forever now, and now I finally am! Sorry for the long wait, and I hope you enjoy !**

Cass had tears in her eyes, a rare occurance that only happened when she was deeply moved, and that almost never happened. But listening to Eugene tell her through grunts and moans about his greatest nightmare, that truely horrific last day at the tower, ripped her heart apart.

Eugene went through hell and back for Rapunzel, and _she never knew_. All the _shit_ she gave him, all the grief and fighting and bickering they shared... it made her gut feel like it was receding into itself. She remembered vaguely the day pascal ran away; how Eugene squirmed about the thought of going into the tower, and how she teased him for it later that same night. She always secretly, in the way back corner of her mind, assumed he was just some boy Raps fell for and he stuck around for the crown. Never in a million years did Cass ever think she would even conceive the thought of Eugene dying in that tower...

And now he was reliving his nightmare all over again, at the hands of those two brothers. Through the pain that blurred his vision, Eugene saw Cassandra's tears. He tried lifting his numbing hand to wipe them away, but he hadnt the strength. The fact that he was still conscious, let alone alive, was a miracle. Cass grabbed his hand before it hit the ground and held it close.

She had to save him. She had to find help. She wouldn't let his nightmare become a reality. At least, not today.

...

Their scent wasnt hard for Max to pick up; the Stabbingtons wreaked of heavy liquor, body odor, and cheap cigars. The horse was easily able to pick up their scent and begin the chase.

Eugene kept alert and on the watch as he rode Max through the thick trees of the forest surrounding Corona. They were nearing where the tower use to be, and it gave Eugene an uneasy feeling, but he brushed it off.

Cassondra, on the other hand, was feeling empowered. She was on an almost euphoric rush of adrenaline. The feeling of riding horseback, quickly maneuvering through the woods, on a Manhunt for these two brothers gave her a high. She felt unstoppable. Everything was going according to plan: Max was able to pick up the Stabbingtons' scent quickly and appeared to be closing in on a location, and all men were in formation to close in on the brothers once they were found. Cassandra felt overly prepared, and it gave her a sense of security. She felt like they were going to find the brothers and deal with them quickly.

That was her first mistake.


End file.
